More than 1,000 in Bethlehem without power

PP&L is reporting 1,103 customers are without power in Bethlehem. (PP&L, Courtesy of)

More than 1,000 PPL customers were without power after gas leak caused shutdown of grid.

More than 1,000 PPL customers in Bethlehem were without power for about an hour and 20 minutes after the energy company shut down a section of its grid while the natural gas provider UGI made repairs in the area.

UGI spokeswoman Becky Eshbach said that a passer-by reported the odor of gas on the 500 block of Main Street at 8:21 a.m. and a UGI employee was on site about 10 minutes later. The issue was isolated to a feeder line running to the Sun Inn.

Bethlehem police said several traffic lights in the city were affected by the outage.

A spokesman for PPL said the utility was notified of the leak about 9 a.m. and cut power in that part of its grid while UGI made repairs. According to the company's website, between 1,003 and 1,089 customers were without power while repairs were made.

PPL spokesman Joe Nixon said power was turned back on at 10:20 a.m. Eshbach said the 13 residents who had been evacuated were allowed to return to their homes at that time. Eshbach said UGI anticipated completing repairs by mid-afternoon.